Tim Leffel’s new book To be able to cut one’s living expenses in half seems like the impossible dream. How would you like To go from paying $1300 per month to share a small, cramped two-bedroom apartment with two others in a major city in the developed world to a spacious 2 bedroom apartment in […]

Among the many joys of frequent travel is the ease one develops in packing quickly, hopping on a plane and heading off to a fascinating destination. The ease one develops can also be a drawback. I found that out on a recent trip to Macedonia – a delightful place I have been to many […]

Throughout this summer there will be hundreds of events attracting the traveler to the French Normandy Coast. This year marks the 70th anniversary of the D-Day landings and there will many ceremonies commemorating the event that led to the defeat of the Nazis in Europe. This is a perfect year to travel to Normandy. I […]

I first met Ann Thomas when I stopped by her Singles Travel Company booth at the Los Angeles Travel and Adventure Show in Long Beach, CA. I noticed that single travelers were flocking around her busy booth seeking information. Ann graciously took some time to talk with me about Singles Travel Company and the tours […]

The 70th anniversary of the allied landing known as Operation Overlord or D-Day is being commemorated this year. International travelers will be visiting Normandy and other World II European fields of battle to honor those who fought and sacrificed for a free Europe. D-Day, the largest amphibious invasion in the history of the […]

Rio Dulce town (also known as Fronteras) is a place in Guatemala that I have wanted to travel to since my Peace Corps days in 1991-92. A port town on the river for which it is named, and at the mouth of Lago Isabel, the largest lake in Guatemala, Rio Dulce is a […]

I chose to take my trip to Panajachel, Lake (Lago) Atitlán and Chichicastenango on a weekend. The colorful and large market at “Chichi”, as Chichicastenango is locally known, is open on Thursdays and Sundays and I didn’t want to miss it. Mario, the owner of the Casa Luna Hotel, where I was staying in […]

Traveling to once familiar places can be both delightful or depressing depending upon one’s specific memories and how the destinations have changed since past visits. I am currently in Antigua, Guatemala. I spent many happy hours here in 1991 and 1992 visiting with fellow volunteers when I was in the U.S. Peace Corps. Although my […]

The most rewarding joys of travel, and life, are the unexpected expressions of kindness and humanity we encounter. I think often of a particular incident that happened in my travels. On an August day in 2002 I left Kandahar, Afghanistan, where I was doing development work, to go on an R&R trip to Bangkok, Thailand. […]

Trying to communicate with minimal skills in a foreign language can be frustrating. Attempting to express or gather information when the response from the person spoken to is a quizzical stare can be maddening or ……..entertaining! I once attended a talk and book-signing in San Francisco by the travel writer Pico Iyer. After […]